How does the word “investing” make you feel?
I have found that for many people investing is synonymous with fear. To them putting money in the stock market is risky and instead just save their money in the bank.
Some people just stare at me blankly like I’m some sort of nutjob. To them, investing is complicated. This was the group I was in way back when.
Then there’s one other group, the group that gets excited. This is how I feel today.
Too many people thinking investing means the stock market, where sadly 90% of people lose money. Nine zero…it’s no wonder many people are afraid to invest their hard earned money.
But the truth is today’s world isn’t like the world of 30 years ago. Today everything’s risky.
There is no such thing as a risk free option when it comes to protecting your money. Buy gold, and watch the price drop as many people learned the hard way earlier this way. Companies go poof overnight as in the case of Lehman Brothers. And what about the poor people of Cyprus who earlier this year found out just how “safe” keeping your money in a bank can be.
Real estate, diamonds, artwork, stamps…they all come with a certain level of risk.
I was thinking about this the other day when I came across an article on how COMICS of all things were turning out to be a great investment. You can (and I recommend it) read all about it here.
Personally I wish I had a few hundred thousand dollars to invest in some rare comics, but I don’t, so that’s out.
After reading the article I sat down and thought about what is really the best investment of the 21st century, my answer may (if you are new here) or may not surprise you. But before I get to it let me explain how I got into investing myself.
Six years ago I found out I would be a father.
I was ready mentally, physically and emotionally, but not monetarily and realized that to be able to give my child the best life possible I would need to learn how to grow my money while NOT working.
At the time creating an online business didn’t cross my mind, but I did know that my father had some investments that one day might become mine.
Not wanting to waste such a gift I decided to make investing a study.
It was slow going at first, but little by little I started to make sense of our financial world and today I consider myself well versed in finance. So good in fact, that I went on to give a seminar on the topic. In case you’re interested in finding out more about it, click here for a 5-part mini video series. While the seminar is over I’m about to release a downloadable copy of it, you can check out a sneak peek of what you’ll learn in the seminar here.
Through learning about finance and a bankrupt business (that’s a story for another day) I do believe that the single best investment people can make in today’s world is…
Drum roll please…
Our education.
Boring answer, right?! Well, not really because no matter where you choose to put your money, you should understand the risks involved as well as the potential growth.
So just what should people study, well, I came up with a list of ten things that I feel will serve you well in the next decade or so. And best of all, they’re evergreen so they’ll never go out of style.
- Real estate
- Business
- Investing
- Marketing
- Copywriting
- Medicine
- Tech
- Programming
- Accounting
- Agriculture
Sadly, I see more and more students investing large sums of time (4 years) and money ($100,000 plus) for degrees in things such as literature and history…don’t get me wrong, I think both are valuable, but wouldn’t spending four years at a library studying those things on our own allow us to use our money on a down payment on a house, or to start a small business.
Few colleges teach real estate investing and stock market investing and yet nearly everyone I know who has over a million dollars to their name has made it not through their job, but by putting their money to work.
I realize that money may not be the only thing, but as Kim Kiyosaki says in her book, Rich Woman (highly recommended), “Money does affect everything that is important-your health, your education, and your quality of life. Ultimately, money buys you one of two things: It either buys you slavery, or it buys you freedom.”
I want freedom in my life and for my son.
So while comics may be a great investment, the greatest is in ourselves.
Adrian Shepherd